1899–1962; American cinematographer
Left Universal Pictures after the failure of James Whale s adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque s novel "The Road Back" due to the studios demands that the picture be re-edited. They were afraid the picture would be boycotted in Europe because of its strong anti-Nazi content. The film had subsequently been "watered down" by the new heads of Universal so as not to upset the Nazi regime.
Had a penchant for off-beat tilted camera angles and eccentric tracking movements. After winding down his career as a cinematographer in the 1940s, he free-lanced as a trick photography consultant.
Director of photography from 1920. Under contract at Pathe, 1927-1930; Universal, 1934-1936 (where he did his most memorable work on James Whale s Bride of Frankenstein (1935) ) and Show Boat ); 20th Century Fox, 1938; Paramount 1941-1942; and United Artists, 1943-1945,1950.
